Monday, 16 February 2015

Many within the various groups who do ECW re-enactment use
Gregory King’s 1688 estimate of the population and wealth of England and Wales
to provide a plan of the social structure of society in the mid 17th century. I
have recently been working on a 1608 census type document, a muster roll for
the County of Gloucestershire, for a talk on Gloucestershire occupations that I
am going to give later in the spring. I thought it would be interesting to try
to see how the two compare, one forty years before 1648 and one forty years
after. So what are these two data sets?

Gregory King's estimate of population and wealth, England
and Wales, 1688

Gregory King (1648-1712) is often regarded as the first great
English statistician, a subject known at the time as “political arithmetic”. He
was Lancaster Herald and heavily involved in the tax system, his major
work‘Natural and political observations
upon the state and condition of England, 1696’ attempted to estimate a range of
information including population size, household size, age distribution, tax
revenues, and wealth. It has been commented that it “betrays a number of common
assumptions of the propertied”, in particular in having only five categories
for the poorer half of society. (Hoppit,
2011)
For a further discussion of the accuracy of King’s work have a look at G. S.
Holmes. (1977)

Gloucestershire 1608

For 1608 all able-bodied men “fit for his Majestie’s service
in the warrs”, and between the ages of 20 and 60 “within the City of Gloucester
and the Inshire of the same” were listed. Bristol was not included as it was a
county in its own right. The list contains the names of 19,402 men, and 135
women who although they could not serve themselves could provide arms. Of these
men 109 were unable in body, and 17,046 gave an occupation or status. There are
defects to the listing, as mentioned above over 2000 don’t give an occupation,
and as John Smyth, steward to Lord Berkeley for whom the list was compiled, remarked
of one place “many made default in this hundred and appeareth not”. The under
reporting does not appear to be large. The listing, with over 150 occupations,
is far, far more detailed than King’s breakdown which only has 26 divisions, of
which only five deal with the bottom half the population. It is often difficult
to try and fit some of the occupations into King’s subdivisions.(Tawney, 1934)

King’s top five subdivisions

Number of families

Ranks, Degrees,
Titles, and Qualifications

Heads
per family

Number of
persons

Yearly income
per family

160

Temporal Lords

40

6,400

2,800

26

Spiritual Lords

20

520

1,300

800

Baronets

16

12,800

880

600

Knights

13

7,800

650

3,000

Esquires

10

30,000

450

12,000

Gentlemen

8

96,000

280

The 1608 census doesn’t list anyone that fits the first
three categories. Henry, Lord Berkeley, died in 1613 and since he inherited the
title in 1553 was probably over the age limit. Henry Parry the Bishop of
Gloucester probably didn’t actually reside in the county as he was only bishop
from 1607-10. The 1608 list has 430 men (presumed heads of households), who are
gentlemen, esquires or knights, and a further 27 men declare themselves to be
sons or brother of the same.

King’s “educated” classes

King has six groupings which I have somewhat unceremoniously
lumped together as below.

Number of families

Ranks, Degrees,
Titles, and Qualifications

Heads
per family

Number of
persons

Yearly income
per family

5,000

Persons in Offices

8

40,000

240

5,000

Persons in Offices

6

30,000

120

10,000

Persons in the Law

7

70,000

140

2,000

Clergymen

6

12,000

60

8,000

Clergymen

5

40,000

45

16,000

Persons in Sciences and Liberal Arts

5

80,000

60

In the 1608 list there are only 62 people who fit these
groupings. Among them are surgeons, schoolmasters, barristers, scriveners,
musicians, mayors, chamberlains, constables, and clergymen.

King has these 12 top ranks of society as forming 4.5% of
the population, while in the 1608 list they are only 3%, this is because of...

The problem of indoor servants

There is a problem with indoor servants because King
includes them with their employer. So for example a gentleman, esquire or
knight has a household of between 8 and 13 people according to King. Based on
the 1608 list nearly two thirds of these people are going to be servants. In
the 1608 list 1196 men declare themselves to be servants to these groups,
including 122 who describe themselves as servants to women, presumably of some
status, and possibly part of the households already mentioned. There is a
different servant problem in that only three clergymen are listed, however we
have servants to fourteen different clergymen. The indoor servants from these
top social groups are just over 7% of the 1608 list.

King’s Merchants, Shopkeepers and Tradesmen

Number of families

Ranks, Degrees,
Titles, and Qualifications

Heads
per family

Number of
persons

Yearly income
per family

2,000

Merchants and Traders by Sea

8

16,000

400

8,000

Merchants and Traders by Land

6

48,000

200

40,000

Shopkeepers and Tradesmen

4½

180,000

45

This is obviously a very disparate group. Only one man in
the 1608 listing declares himself to be a merchant. The largest group in 1608
are the butchers of whom there are 252 in the county, they are followed by 119 innkeepers,
vintners and victuallers, and 109 bakers. Others relating to food sales include
fishmongers, a cheesemonger, a grocer and a pearmonger. On the textile side
there are 112 mercers, 30 drapers 12 haberdashers and 40 badgers, chapmen and
pedlars. Beyond these we have chandlers,
barbers, apothecaries, stationers, and an ironmonger. People who are making
rather than selling have been included with the artisans and handicrafts rather
than this group. This group forms just under 5% of the population in 1608 and
just under 3.7% in King.

King’s Artisans and craftsmen

Number of families

Ranks, Degrees,
Titles, and Qualifications

Heads
per family

Number of
persons

Yearly income
per family

60,000

Artisans and Handicrafts

4

240,000

40

This is where King and the 1608 listing depart from each
other. It depends on your definition of artisan or craftsman, but for King
these formed just over 4.4% of the population, whereas for 1608 it is over 34%.

Textile workers

Textile workers are the largest group forming over 15% of
the 1608 list, the question is whether King would have considered them
craftsmen, or placed them in his cottagers and paupers grouping. The largest
number over 1,800 are weavers of one sort or another, but there are also
fullers, dyers, shearmen, etc. There are also over 300 clothiers, these are men
that actually sell the cloth so should perhaps be in the tradesmen section. In
addition we have one knitter, one bone (bobbin) lace maker and one embroiderer,
remember these are men, considerably more women would have followed these
occupations.

Leather workers

Again are these men King would have considered artisans or
craftsmen. They are a small group 201 all told that include tanners, saddlers,
collarmakers, curriers and a furrier.

Clothing makers

Most of these may well have been considered craftsmen by
King, they form 7.5% of the 1608 list and include the obvious tailors,
shoemakers and glovers, but also hatters, cobblers, hosiers, point-and
garter-makers.

Craftsmen in wood

These form just under 4% of the 1608 list and two thirds of
them are described as carpenters or joiners. As Gloucestershire includes the
River Severn there is a small group of shipwrights and ship’s carpenters.
Others in this grouping include coopers, wheelwrights, wheelers, turners,
hoopers, bowyers, fletchers, shovel makers, basket makers, trencher makers,
hive makers, and more.

The building trades

Again difficult to decide how many of these King would have
included as artisans, but here forming around 2% of the list we have masons and
freemasons, by far the largest group, slatters, tilers, thatchers, glaziers,
stonelayers, plasterers, pargeters, painters, limeburners and paviors.

Metal workers

A group forming 3.3% of the 1608 list of whom three quarters
are smiths. The other occupations which can be included in this grouping are
nailers, cutlers and pewterers. Six men are ironfounders and one is a bell
founder. There are 8 wiredrawers and 5 pinmakers, plus tinkers, braziers,
plumbers and two goldsmiths.

Makers of food and drink

These form 1.5% of the list and comprise millers, the
largest group, maltsers and brewers.

Miscellaneous

Finally for this section a group of occupations that can be
considered artisanal or crafts, but otherwise don’t fit. Here we have paper,
parchment, card and cardboard makers, also potters, bottle makers, a starch
maker, and a saltpetreman.

King’s farmers

Number of families

Ranks, Degrees,
Titles, and Qualifications

Heads
per family

Number of
persons

Yearly income
per family

40,000

Freeholders

7

280,000

84

140,000

Freeholders

5

700,000

50

150,000

Farmers

5

750,000

44

King does not list
either yeomen or husbandmen, the two largest agricultural groups in the 1608
list. Generally speaking yeomen are freeholders and husbandmen are not, so
perhaps the husbandmen equate to the 150,000 farmers King lists. These three
groups above form 24% of households according to King but 30.5% of the 1608
list.

King’s labourers
and out servants

Number of families

Ranks, Degrees,
Titles, and Qualifications

Heads
per family

Number of
persons

Yearly income
per family

364,000

Labouring People and Out
Servants

3½

1,275,000

15

For King these form
27% of the population, however even by taking all those who list themselves as
labourers, all servants to yeomen and husbandmen plus those in towns who list
themselves as labourers, all other agricultural workers (shepherds, warreners,
etc.) and all servants to artisans and craftsmen, I can only get this up to 19.3%. So I am
adding in the 172 people in the mining and quarrying industries which takes it
to 20.5%

King’s soldiers
and sailors

Number of families

Ranks, Degrees,
Titles, and Qualifications

Heads
per family

Number of
persons

Yearly income
per family

5,000

Naval Officers

4

20,000

80

4,000

Military Officers

4

16,000

60

50,000

Common Seamen

3

150,000

20

35,000

Common Soldiers

2

70,000

14

Gloucestershire has
no officers, nor does it have any soldiers, however it does have seamen. There
are 18 fishermen, 194 sailors, 22 boatmen, watermen and trowmen. To these I am
going to add the 62 other men who are related to transport; carriers, carmen
and loaders. For King these formed nearly 7% of households, but for Gloucestershire
it is just over 1.5%

The “missing” 30
percent

Number of families

Ranks, Degrees,
Titles, and Qualifications

Heads
per family

Number of
persons

Yearly income
per family

400,000

Cottagers and Paupers

3¼

1,300,000

6.5

King has almost 30%
of the population as cottagers and paupers, and late Stuart poverty has been
discussed by Arkell (1987) among others. Unsurprisingly
no one in the 1608 list describes themselves as either a cottager or a pauper. Undoubtedly some of the artisans and some of
the agricultural workers were very poor, but it is difficult with the
Gloucestershire list to separate them out from those that weren’t. Below is a table
of the comparisons, figures do not add to 100% because of rounding.

1608

1688

King’s top five subdivisions
&“educated” classes

3

4.5

Indoor servants

7

0

King’s Merchants,
Shopkeepers and Tradesmen

4

3.7

King’s Artisans and
craftsmen

34

4.4

King’s farmers

30.4

24

King’s labourers and out
servants

20.3

27

Soldiers and sailors

1.6

6.9

Cottagers and paupers

0

29.4

100.3

99.9

Arkell, T., 1987. The incidence of poverty in the
later seventeenth century. Social history, 12(1), pp. 23-47.

Holmes, G. S.,
1977. Gregory King and the Social Structure of Pre-Industrial England. Transactions
of the Royal Historical Society, Volume 27, pp. 41-68.